For those looking to support a medieval-themed project, Blazon! The Card Game might be just what you are looking for. Its inventor, Avery Krouse has turned to the popular crowd funding website Kickstarter to raise $2500 for the production of what he believes to be the first ever heraldry card game.

Blazon! The Card Game is described as “a heraldry game for 2-6 players based around the idea of collecting the components found in a coat of arms (the objects or “charges,” the colors or “tinctures,” and so forth). This game is great for kids, adults, anyone with an interest in heraldry, anyone with an interest in medieval history, or anybody who just likes to play a fun card game!”

Krouse, an active participant in the Society for Creative Anachronism, told Medievalists.net that he developed the idea for the game about three years ago. “I was preparing to teach a class on basic heraldic design and getting materials ready,” he said. “I had the thought that flash cards of some nature would be a really effective way to illustrate the concepts I’d be covering, so I began to design some. Around about that same time, I started to take an interest in board and card games, and it occurred to me that some of the same concepts in these games such as collecting sets of objects or components have a similar vein in heraldry.”

The first prototype for the game has been developed, and Krouse is now testing it out to see what improvements can be made. He adds, that “the game can appeal to any age group. As it is does require a little bit of reading to identify keywords on the cards, it wouldn’t necessarily be appropriate for very young children, but I believe it could appeal to children as early as 10 years old. I have specifically included a gameplay style that works better for young children, designed as more of a matching game with a bit of player-versus-player competition, but not as difficult as the standard game.”

The Kickstarter campaign is almost half-way towards reaching its goal of $2500, with about 23 days to go. Krouse says the funding “will allow me to employ the assistance of more professional graphic designers who can help evolve the card design as time goes on. It will also allow me to spend more time developing additional sets of cards to enhance the gameplay and learning experience. It is my overall goal to produce at least four more expansion sets to add new charges, heraldic designs, and even some game-affecting cards (to play on yourself and your opponents) to add more variety to the play.”